Quercus × macdonaldii
Species of tree
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Quercus × macdonaldii,[1][3][4] formerly Quercus macdonaldii, with the common names MacDonald's oak and Macdonald oak, is a rare hybrid species of oak in the family Fagaceae.[1]
| Quercus × macdonaldii | |
|---|---|
| |
| Leaves from an individual on Santa Cruz Island, California | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Embryophytes |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Spermatophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fagales |
| Family: | Fagaceae |
| Genus: | Quercus |
| Subgenus: | Quercus subg. Quercus |
| Section: | Quercus sect. Quercus |
| Species: | Q. × macdonaldii |
| Binomial name | |
| Quercus × macdonaldii | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
on the California Channel Islands
Description
The tree is between 5 and 15 meters tall, with scaly bark on the trunk. The twigs are gray and tomentose. The leaves are between 4 and 7 centimeters in length, the blades are oblong to obovate, and adaxially glabrous to sparsely hairy. The petioles are between 3 and 10 millimeters. The fruits cup is between 10 and 20 millimeters long and 6 to 10 millimeters deep. The nuts are between 20 and 35 millimeters long and conic-oblong or ovoid. The flowering time is between the months of March and May.[5]
Distribution
The tree is endemic to the California Channel Islands, on Santa Cruz Island, Santa Rosa Island, and Santa Catalina Island, in Southern California.[3] It is found in chaparral and woodlands habitats in canyons and slopes below 600 metres (2,000 ft).[3]
Taxonomy
The plant was reclassified as Quercus × macdonaldii, a naturally occurring hybrid of Quercus lobata and Quercus pacifica, or possibly other oak species.[3][4][6] Both parents are placed in section Quercus.[7] It is considered a species by Greene but derived from hybrids involving Quercus pacifica, Quercus lobata, and possibly others.[5]
